In a saturated wellness market as a food and health brand, getting your product in front of the right audience is more critical than ever. One of the most effective and authentic ways to drive awareness and build trust is through a product seeding strategy, particularly when you incorporate dietitians into the mix.
If you work for a health and wellness brand, this post will cover why product seeding should be part of your marketing toolkit and, more importantly, how to do it right!
Plus – learn how The RD Link makes product seeding simple and effective, connecting you with dietitians who want to try your product!
–
To learn more about how dietitian collaborations drive brand growth, check out our free mini training on the ROI of RD partnerships. Join here for the free email series.
What Is Product Seeding and Why Is It Essential?
Product seeding is a marketing tactic where marketing teams send free products to targeted influential individuals so they can try and experience your product and brand first hand. The key here is that they are influential. By sharing product, companies hope to foster a relationship and encourage recipients to authentically share their products with their communities.
As a health-driven brand it is essential to include registered dietitians in your product seeding strategy. Unlike traditional influencers, dietitians are formally trained nutrition experts who offer a ton of credibility and can be hugely impactful in building trust with consumers.
Like most consumers, taste is a top priority. While dietitians can read labels on shelves, they are significantly more likely to recommend products that they have tried and enjoy themselves. By product seeding to dietitians, you not only introduce dietitians to your products and your company but you have the opportunity to begin a relationship that can drive long term trust with consumers.
Benefits of Product Seeding
Product seeding stands out from other marketing strategies because it centers around building long-term brand awareness and trust. Unlike one-off ad or influencer campaigns, product seeding works to build a community around the brand, lasting relationships, and long term visibility and trust. Enterprise and startup companies alike use product seeding to drive awareness, build community, elevate trust, and impact the bottom line.
This strategy works well because it places your product in the hands of people whose opinions influence purchasing decisions. Whether it’s through Instagram stories, blogs, or professional recommendations to clients and patients, dietitians can amplify your brand’s message in a credible and science-backed way.
If you work for a food or health brand, it is essential to have dietitians on your list for any PR mailer or product seeding campaign. Unlike traditional influencers, dietitians offer expert credibility and custom recommendations to their clients and audiences.
Why Work with Dietitians? The Power of Expert Voices
When it comes to promoting wellness products, credibility matters. Dietitians bring unmatched value to your product seeding strategy, and here’s why:
- Trust & Expertise: Registered Dietitians (RDs) are licensed professionals with evidence-based training. Their endorsement carries weight with both consumers and other healthcare providers.
- Authenticity: Most RDs only promote what they truly believe in. They are picky about what they like, too! If they like your product, they’ll naturally share it with their audience in an organic, engaging way.
- Niche Influence: Many dietitians have strong niche communities- whether focused on gut health, weight management, sports nutrition, or plant-based eating. Product seeding with dietitians lets you target the right audience with precision.
- Client Reach: Beyond social media, dietitians influence behavior in 1:1 sessions, group programs, webinars, corporate wellness presentations, and more.
The benefits of targeting dietitians with your product seeding strategy are endless. You want your brand to be backed by people who are trusted in the industry, and for food and health brands, that’s medical providers like RDs!
Unlike traditional influencers, we often hear brands say, “RDs just get it!”. They understand the ingredients, nutrient composition, and exactly who would benefit from the product without much explanation behind it.
Curious about other ways you can partner with dietitians as a food and wellness brand? Check out this blog post to learn more!
Tips for an Effective Product Seeding Strategy
To make the most of your efforts, here are some essential tips to build and effectively sample your products with registered dietitians.
- Target the Right Fit: Choose RDs whose expertise aligns with your brand values and product benefits. Look for those already speaking about related topics or problems your product solves or working with the patients who would benefit most.
- For example, if you offer a probiotic supplement, target dietitians who specialize in gut health.
- For example, if you offer a probiotic supplement, target dietitians who specialize in gut health.
- No Strings Attached: Product seeding is not a paid ad. Avoid strict posting requirements; instead, focus on building relationships and establishing trust. This is a big one. Just getting your product in the hands of dietitians is a huge perk!
- Keep It Simple: Provide a clear overview of what’s included, nutrition benefits, company information, and suggestions for how to use the product. Politely encourage them to share on social if they like the products – send the product in nice packaging and make it easy for them to follow and tag you or get in touch.
- Follow Up & Engage: After sending your product, follow up with a thoughtful message or even ask for honest feedback. You’ll gain valuable insight and may even spark future partnership opportunities.
- Respect Their Voice: Allow professionals to speak honestly and authentically about your product. That’s where their true influence shines.
How to Be Successful at Product Seeding with Dietitians
While general product seeding strategies can work across industries, partnering with dietitians requires a more intentional and thoughtful approach.
These are highly educated professionals who value transparency, quality, and science-backed claims. To make your product seeding campaign resonate with dietitians:
- Lead with Transparency: Clearly list all ingredients, certifications (like non-GMO, gluten-free, organic), and nutrition facts. Dietitians need to feel confident recommending your product, so providing full transparency builds immediate trust.
- Highlight Evidence-Based Benefits: Dietitians are more likely to engage with products that are supported by clinical studies, third-party testing, or a strong nutritional profile. Include any relevant research or unique formulation details in your outreach.
- Support Their Mission: Many dietitians care deeply about health equity, sustainability, and helping clients build better relationships with food. Frame your product in a way that aligns with those values, showing that your brand is not just selling, but supporting wellness.
- Respect Their Time: Keep communication brief, professional, and personalized. Offer to send samples without expecting a guaranteed post, and make it clear that you understand the difference between gifting and sponsored partnerships.
- Provide Useful Resources: Consider offering a one-pager with talking points, usage suggestions, recipe cards, or coupons to share. This makes it easier for dietitians to incorporate your product into their content or client sessions.
- Be Open to Feedback: Dietitians may have valuable insights on how to improve your product or better position it in the wellness space. Invite their feedback as part of the partnership, not just their endorsement.
- Make It Personal: RDs like to connect with a person. Provide a way for them to keep in touch, whether that’s on social media, a direct contact, or through your RD Link profile.
- Stay Engaged: Keep these people in your network and follow-up to stay visible and present. Continue to offer free samples of new products or discounts to share with patients. Support their events and partnership opportunities, especially if they reach your ideal audience.
When done well, product seeding with dietitians doesn’t just result in social posts; it opens the door to meaningful relationships, long-term partnerships, and authentic brand ambassadors who truly believe in your mission.
Use The RD Link to Streamline Your Product Seeding Campaigns
If you’re ready to try product seeding with dietitians, The RD Link makes it extremely simple. The RD Link is the simplest way to get your product into the hands of real nutrition experts – without expensive agencies or complicated influencer platforms.
As a brand partner, you can:
- Post product seeding campaigns that showcase your product and invite RDs to participate. One post will easily get hundreds of RDs to sign up – so be sure to cap it if you want to limit it!
- Reach the right nutrition experts who are actively seeking brand partnerships and new products to try and recommend to patients. Filter through experts by industry, specialty, location, and personal characteristics to find the right fit RDs for each product or seasonal campaign focus or goal.
- Track dietitian interest and communication in one centralized place. It’s the easiest way to get seen by thousands of nutrition experts.
Whether you’re launching a new snack, supplement, or specialty food product, The RD Link helps you get your product into the hands of dietitians who are excited to try it and share it with their community.
To learn more about how The RD Link helps you get your product in the hands of key influential experts book a demo with us here.